The Shivers: 'There really isn’t a limit to how far we can build this world out'
Designer Andy Logan on his spooky pop-up TTRPG's upcoming expansion
Sure, pop-up books, but have you ever imagined being able to play through one in a multi-player episodic adventure?
That’s the pitch for The Shivers, a 2022 release successfully backed via Kickstarter. Created as an introduction for families to get into the realm of TTRPGs (that’s tabletop role-playing games for the non-aficionados), it sees a gamer assume the role of dungeon master, guiding the rest, playing as the clue-chasing Shivers family, through the rooms of haunted Fogmoor Mansion: in reality, interlinked 3D pop-up tiles, each with their own hidden compartments.
Adding to the game’s longevity is its series of built-in episodes, ensuring that each room ‘board’ can be customisable, depending on which story is being told.
Now the mansion is getting bigger. The game’s follow-up expansion set, Triple Terror!, was successfully backed earlier this year, seeing, yep, three new rooms, plus new character components and 12 new episodes to go through. As well as the rooms, the set includes a huge pop-up facade of the whole Fogmoor Mansion.
Adding to the retro RPG vibes is illustrator Bill Tiller, who worked on a series of SCUMM-fuelled LucasArts games, such as The Curse of Monkey Island and The Dig.
It’s high-concept work that deserves our intruige. So we spoke to the games creator and designer Andy Logan about what to expect from the upcoming expansions – and how big could the game go?
Firstly, for the uninitiated, what is The Shivers and how did the idea come about?
AL: The Shivers is the world’s first pop-up mystery adventure. Really, it’s the first game to celebrate the dimensionality of pop-ups in a tabletop game, while also blending the openness of light roleplaying and storytelling into a modular and expandable game system.
The idea came to me when I was searching for a simple but fun and imaginative game to play with my own young family of three girls. We tried a few games (like Betrayal at House on the Hill), but they were too complex and hard to understand, so they quickly lost interest.
One day, we were in a bookstore and I got caught up in the magic of pop-up books. A spark of inspiration hit me then and there, to create an immersive game using pop-ups! And the rest is history, from Kickstarter to mass production and worldwide distribution to fans around the globe.
The expansions have been successfully Kickstarted. How is production going on them?
AL: Yes, we’re deep in development. We’ve advanced most of our episodes to a mid-way point.
These are our largest and most complex pop-ups ever, so they are taking more time to develop and illustrate than we anticipated. We expect delivery of the new expansions in 2025.
With the pop-up material, it looks a pretty complex project. What extra measures have you had to make to ensure the scenery and components are durable?
AL: We have a world-class paper engineer in Renee Jablow, who ensures our pop-ups are robust. We also use special paper that can withstand more abuse than usual, including special coatings.
But we’ve noticed most people handle them delicately. It’s only very young kids who tend to get over-enthusiastic and smashy.
It's a role-playing, spooky mystery game. Have you bought in any additional immersion steps to enhance the experience for players?
AL: Yes, we’ve provided a lot of support for the GM (what we call the storyteller) to enhance the experience. This includes prompts for dropping hints to players (and ways to drop those hints using the house itself), a spooky Spotify soundtrack, the use of decorative props, etc.
We also encourage the players to get into their characters, who each have a unique personality, strengths, fears, and a handy signature catchphrase.
What sustainability measures have been taken throughout the project?
AL: With very little plastic used in our game, our project almost entirely celebrates what paper can do. Our manufacturing partners use sustainable/renewable resources in sourcing their paper supplies, which has a high degree of recycled content.
Have you had any particularly memorable feedback from players of the base game?
AL: Many people, families especially, say that it’s their absolute favourite game.
It’s very easy to jump in and start playing, and each adventure completes in about an hour, so it’s respectful of people’s busy lives. But during that hour, they are building a world together, exploring, communicating, role playing, and puzzle solving, so it utilises many cognitive and social skills.
There's a massive pop-up of Fogmoor Manor included in the expansions. Can we expect a stack of Easter eggs and additions to the lore contained within?
AL: We’re still working on the final artwork for that piece. It’s not fully completed yet. In all of our rooms, we like to hide little discoveries (a favourite of both myself and our amazing illustrator, Bill Tiller)
You went to extra lengths to state your concerns about the use of AI in the Kickstarter campaign. Why did you feel that was important to do?
AL: Our project wouldn’t exist without either the spark of inspiration, or the incredible skills of many creative professionals.
AI works against both of those critical creative areas, and creates mundane/commonplace solutions by stealing from the output of others. We don’t mind using it in simple tasks like increasing the resolution of an image, or spell checking, but those are boring/peripheral tasks to the creative process.
We’d never use it in the core of creativity itself. Lets just say that AI could never have come up with The Shivers.
You've bought in a new and expanded team of writers for the expansion. How did you start working together?
AL: I’m always excited to see how The Shivers looks through new creative eyes. They think of things/stories/situations that I never would have conceived of on my own.
So really it’s an open-ended storytelling platform and I’m always looking for well-respected and talented partners to add their unique talents to the Shivers universe. I reached out to them individually and they had, of course, already heard of the game and were excited to collaborate.
What are the plans for the future? Any plans to expand Fogmoor Manor, or the surrounding area, further?
AL: Oh yes, more rooms inside the Manor, and more locations in the surrounding town, all as new pop-up modules. There really isn’t a limit to how far we can build this world out.
This rich pop-up world we’re building might even look amazing on the big screen!
What are your favourite tabletop games to play with family members?
AL: Aside from our own game, I really like playing games with them that relive parts of my childhood.
These tend to be simpler games (Stop Thief, Fireball Island, Life, but all with our own unique rules), and also enjoy immersive experiences like escape rooms and our own home-made LARP sessions in our local parks.
Honestly, most tabletop games are just too complex/time-consuming for our family. We get into page three of the instructions and I can see I’ve lost them already before we even start playing.
Will we see the expansions in the shops after fulfilment and, if so, when could we expect to see them there?
AL: Our primary focus is getting the new expansions into our Kickstarter backer’s hands. The FLGS shops have been eager to carry the Core game, but the expansions need more time before they become a popular retail purchase. Hopefully that will build with time.
For more information, visit theshiversgame.com